WOW! What an experience!! Experience of a life time and amazing staff with lots of in-depth knowledge.
We meet Christian at the Opequmar Marina gate at 8:45 and went into their class room where we watched a video and had a very informative chat about the wildlife and the dolphins we could expect to see. We were also shown different bones and teeth from the dolphins and whales.
It took about 25 minutes from leaving the Marina to locating the dolphins. When we found the dolphins a group of 4 were allowed to jump into the sea. We were given googels, flippers, snorkels and if you needed it, a life jacket. It was easy getting on and off the boat. You slide off of the boat into the sea and there’s some steps to get back in. I was worried about getting in and out because I’ve got really bad balance but it was really easy and Caesar helped.
When you’re in the sea it’s really important to listen to the staff and other passengers on the boat about where the dolphins are. They’ll give you advice on where they are and where to swim to because it’s harder to locate them when you’re in the water. The dolphins swim fast so be prepared to swim quickly. When the dolphins swim near you you’ll be instructed to dive down to 1. See the dolphins and 2. show the dolphins that you’re happy to swim near them. The water is very murky so you can only really see an arms length in front of you but the dolphins get so close to you that you can still see them very clearly. You can’t touch them (completely understandable because they are wild dolphins). There were plenty of chances to go in (we went in twice) some of the children went in 4 times. We were also lucky enough to see some sea turtles. At the end of trip we were given drinks (cola, water etc) and cereal/snack bars.
Personally, I would never swim with captive dolphins and I never thought I’d be possible to get up this close and personal with wild dolphins. They don’t use fish/food to get the dolphins near the boat they wait for the dolphins to decide if they want to swim near you or not.
The boat is a small one so don’t bring too much (bags etc) because it’s hard to move round when there’s lots of stuff in the way. The water isn’t choppy so the boat doesn’t rock lots, I get motion sickness but I was ok on this boat. The sea is also warm, there’s no sock when jumping in (I thought it would be freezing because we were far out).
We booked via the website and messaged the company via WhatsApp when we had questions and they were very speedy with their response. I was worried this wasn’t a really place/a scam but I can 100% hand on heart say that the company is really and the experience is brilliant!
I would also say that this is fantastic value for money. It was £57.50pp, whereas swimming with captive dolphins via TUI or Vallarta adventures was £120.
Bring: water, a towel, sun cream, hat/sunglasses and a change of clothes for when you get off the boat.
Overall, blown away by the trip and the staff. Get yourself booked in asap!
Thank you to Christian and Caesar!
